


Old Stars Still Shine

by IrisClou



Series: Quiet Desperation [4]
Category: Rockman | Mega Man Classic
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-05 17:42:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10313594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrisClou/pseuds/IrisClou
Summary: Sequel to Winter, Give Way To SpringBlues and Shadowman finally have their long awaited second meeting, and come to terms with the dark memories of their past, and find joy in one other’s future together as something more than friends.It’s gay, folks. Real gay.





	

 

[[Suns And Stars | Really Slow Motion]](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3Kf-FlECN7M)

"This is, quite possibly, the worst decision I've ever made."

 

"Is it now? Feels pretty good on my end."

 

"Yes, well--" Shadow felt himself get flustered - an emotion he did not handle willingly.

 

"Relax, nature boy. This is pretty nature-y, isn't it? Cows, hay--"

 

"Straw that is in my clothes and piercing my skin."

 

"What a big baby." Blues laughed, and snuggled closer to Shadow in the loft's straw bed. "I didn't know Wily made a Shadow _baby_ and not Shadow _man_."

 

"You are impossible, and I don't know why I waste my time with you." His cheeks flushed hotly in the dark.

 

"Something you _don't_ know, hm?" Blues let himself relax, and pressed his forehead to the back of Shadow's neck, "That's unusual. I thought you knew everything by now."

 

Shadow may have made a bitter noise in response, but he was deeply thankful for the darkness of night that hid his blush.

 

Even though his heart was tense, never in his life having been close to another living being, not like this, his body was warm, calm even, against Blues'. He let out a hushed sigh.

 

"Don't mean to spoil the mood, but how close were you to Bass? He never really mentioned you, until I asked. He was a little...what's the word..."

 

"Enamoured? Smitten?" Shadow gruffed, shifting slightly.

 

"Ha, yeah. That's it. I know he and Elecman were close, he always talks about him. It's hilarious how red faced he gets."

 

"He had a good few brothers he looked up to. I was one of them. Bass wasn't... _picky_ about who he was with, but he did have favorites." Shadow shifted further, so Blue's nose was to the crook of his neck.

 

"Were you one?"

 

"Of course. Bass is...easily impressionable. My line of work must have appealed to a darker side of him."

 

"He thought you were hot shit, basically."

 

"You could say that."

 

Blues let out a laugh Shadow hadn't heard in years. Warm, husky. The rust in his throat made it that way now.

 

"I guess me and Bass have more in common than I thought." He closed his eyes, fingers trailing down to brush Shadow's hand on his hip.

 

"I worry about that, truthfully."

 

"Bass is a good kid though. I need to give him more credit for that. Smarter than I was at his age, that's for sure."

 

Shadow coughed to hide a very undignified noise.

 

"Oh, shut it. Younger me was dumb enough to save you, be grateful." Blues smiled, cold lips to hot skin.

 

"Did you ever consider it? Be honest with me, Blues. Back then, did you?" Shadow felt a warmth stir through his entire body at the boy's touch. Foolish, the both of them.

 

Though he could not see it, he knew Blues was scowling darkly.

 

"...No. I didn't." The cold fingers felt rough on Shadow's soft hands. Small hands, delicate and slender. Not like his own, with worn-to-the-metal knuckles and dirty fingernails. "I was convinced it didn't even exist back then. All I knew was I hated most everything. But some things I...knew I couldn't hate all the time." A pause, "Whether I liked it or not, I knew we all had common ground somewhere. And because of that, I couldn't let you all rot away."

 

He dug his callused thumb into Shadow's palm, and slowly relaxed as warm fingers wrapped around his hand.

 

"I thought it was only for humans." Shadow began quietly, eyes half lidded, his long lashes turning his view of Blues beside him into an oily, stained glass dream. "But," A tender noise, caught in his sigh, "then Wily created Bass. And I think as a whole, we experienced love for the first time. He really was..." The man smiled, "He was everything we never knew we needed. And we didn't deserve him, even at his worst."

 

Blues grinned, but said nothing.

 

"Your whole world, the way you view it and everything in it and outside of it...it all changes when you have a child in your life."

 

"Amen." Blues chuckled.

 

"Elecman fell the hardest for him. Was almost obsessed with him. Coddled him night and day. He was just so happy to be a part of Bass's life, I suppose. And when Bass needed to move on, grow up...Elec took it pretty hard."

 

"Mm."

 

"And of course, Bass adores him right back. He's the only one of us Bass is...haha, actually affectionate towards. It's pretty cute, considering." Shadow chuffed. "Almost thought they had something going for them, but I think Elecman realized..."

 

"Bass would find his own?"

 

"Yeah. We figured he and Rock would either blow each other up or become friends in the end."

 

Blues snorted, and pushed himself closer, his wild hair obscuring his face and making Shadow laugh.

 

"It didn't matter. We all knew Elec had a thing for Quick, and the second Bass ran off, Quick had to make sure Elec didn't die of heartbreak, and..." he shrugged, "That was it, really. They're happy, so we're happy."

 

"You all are such saps."

 

"We can be. But Bass started it all." Shadow stretched out a leg. "I wasn't as close to him physically as some of the others were, but I did love him dearly. When he was quiet, he was perfect." He looked away, the cherry blossom blush staining his cheeks, "In truth, I miss those times. When we didn't have to fight. When we just had to spend time with Bass so he'd learn about the world around him."

 

Then, a stormy look, stiffness in his bones, fingers hardened, tense.

 

"That changed when Wily made Bass fight. It was horrid. Unforgivable. We all almost revolted. But we knew it would end terribly if we did." Shadow felt the pain twist deeper in his heart like a knife. "He was almost never happy after that. He always came home bitter, sulking. Couldn't even touch him, let alone get near him. Like a wounded animal, he'd lash out at us."

 

"I'll never understand it. And I refuse to think there is anything to understand." Blues spoke darkly, his voice strained with emotion. "Humans..." He began, but Shadow quieted him with a gentle touch.

 

"Don't try. There's no anger here, Blues." He smiled, and pulled himself up to sit. "You weren't angry with me all those years ago, don't let those feelings...taint what we have in this moment."

 

Blues took a few moments to drag the dark thoughts from his heart, but he returned the smile, albeit weakly.

 

Shadow's own smile grew brighter.

 

"I'd even venture to say you were _happy_ to see me back then." He teased, laying back down, but propping himself up on an elbow to face Blues.

 

"You were the only clever bastard in the whole lot, that's why." Blues smirked. "I didn't mind talking to you. And it was fun, with you not knowing who I was the entire time." He yawned, and rubbed at his oily eyes.

 

Shadow simply smiled again, and bent his head, closer to Blues. It was that old feeling. Strange, worrying, but more so--exciting. Invigorating. Something Shadow rarely felt, even in his most intense battles. But something he always felt, deep in his chest, at Blues' presence.

 

"What're you doin,' you idiot? Don't give me that look." Blues couldn't wipe the grin off his own face if he tried. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you'd want to--" He suddenly tensed, the hair on the back of his neck raising. "H-hang on, buddy, woah, p-pardner, l-let's uh...s-settle down, n-now..." The boy stammered weakly as Shadow's soft face was mere inches from his own, eyes kind.

 

"You were gentle with me, Blues. You knew I was in pain. But you talked me through it. Your wit, your determination...even when you thought I couldn't hear you crying when you messed up, and hurt me further...it made me realize what I felt when I saw Bass was real. That love wasn't something for humans alone."

 

Blues stared dumbly at him, his entire body shaking with a newfound heat, one he had never felt in his life before.

 

Shadow could see his fear, and settled him with a reassuring hand on his. Their fingers laced, and squeezed for comfort.

 

He chuffed quietly. "Back then, I thought we were simply friends, and I kept it to myself for all these years. But now, I know, like all things, there's more to it than that. There always has been."

 

Blues couldn't make a witty reply to save his life. He just continued to stare, chest heaving with each breath.

 

"You may have blindfolded me to protect your identity, Blues. But I think it was _you_ who truly was blind. Take it off, and see for yourself. You don't have to hide yourself all the time." Shadow chuckled raspily, "Trust me. I'm a ninja. That's my entire job, and it gets pretty tiresome."

 

Blues glanced away, fear still gripping at him, a panic at the notion, that--

 

Shadow's delicate hand on his cheek was all it took. He felt his eyes well up with oily tears.

 

"Let me see you."

 

A fragile moment--and the shades slid off.

 

"And here I thought you were going to have laser eyes or something." Shadowman grinned warmly.

 

Blues spluttered. "They...they don't freak you out or anything?"

 

Shadow shook his head slowly. "We both know a deep, deep pain. It's nothing I haven't seen on my brothers' faces before. You need to learn to trust your friends more." Expression, kind once more.

 

"..." Blues lowered his eyes in shame.

 

"You didn't fix me in one day, Blues. It took you a week straight. Don't expect your own scars to heal overnight." A sly pause, "Though, I may know of something that can help speed up the process."

 

Blues scoffed. "Some low ninja trick, I'm sure."

 

"Of course."

 

"W-wait, what?"

 

"It's downright shameful how underhanded this is, even by my standards."

 

"Oh, give it a blow and stop egging yourself on, you sound like an idiot." Blues managed weakly, the look in Shadow's dark eyes downright piercing.

 

"I'll let you in on a ninja secret if you stop trying to inch off the side of the loft, Blues."

 

The boy hadn't noticed how close he had been to the edge, and scrambled away--right into Shadow's arms.

 

"O-okay! Fine, Goddamn, you insufferable ass, what's your stupid little secret that you gotta be all--"

 

"Be quiet."

 

"Fuck you, man." Blues' cheeks were burning, his entire face ruddy. "What's the secret?"

 

Shadow dipped his face to meet Blues', noses touching. The boy froze, shimmering eyes wide. Something was changing in them. Something deep inside him made them lose their darkness.

 

"The secret is," He moved even closer, till Blues' felt his sweet breath on his lips, "I have always loved you."

 

The pounding, the throbbing strain in Blues' chest stopped, quivered, became still. His eyes rolled back and closed, unable to withstand the sheer force of emotions, memories, that coursed through his wire veins--all at the simple, tender touch of Shadow's lips on his own.

 

It was like fire, that raced from the tips of his toes, to the nape of his neck, his wild hair almost standing on end. He held to that fire as it burned his tongue, shorted out each and every circuit he had left.

 

If he was going to die, he was going to die kissing his best friend in a barn loft. And he was okay with that.

 

But he didn't die. And though a bit miffed (because that would've been one hell of a climatic ending to his life), he managed to remember to breathe when Shadow pulled away. It took him a moment to smile, still stunned from the taste of another on his tongue. But he smiled. And he kept smiling. And never stopped. And it kept going, and going until his whole body radiated that smile.

 

"You're not going to explode just because I kissed you, I hope. I know you have a nuclear reactor and all, but this is just...ridiculous." Shadow let out a messy laugh at the fact Blues had literally begin to glow in happiness.

 

"Who knows. That'd be pretty fuckin' cool." Blues was nigh giddy. "I don't know what you did, but--" He didn't even care to finish his sentence.

 

"It's beyond foolish of me, to want this," Shadow cursed how infectious Blues' smile was, "But if I kiss you again, will you glow brighter?"

 

"I don't fuckin know, dude!!" The boy's voice cracked with joy, his chest swelling, "There's only one way to find out, bro. And we gotta a lotta midnight fuel to burn and too many memories to catch up on." He grinned.

 

"I suppose you're right." Shadow laughed.

 

"Anything poetic for me now, Haiku-boy?" Blues teased, but was surprised to see Shadow shake his head.

 

"Not anymore. You can't put this into words, and I'd die trying. Let's let our hearts write the poetry now, Blues."

 

And they did.

 

And Blues did glow brighter, with every kiss, until the whole barn was bathed in the golden glow of friends turned lovers.

 

Madame let out a gentle lowing, and settled down in her straw bed. Something wonderful always happened in the spring, that was common knowledge to all cows.

 

But this was a wonder beyond even the earth's comprehension, let alone a little fat jersey cow who slept peacefully in her stall.


End file.
